Religion

Death with Dignity laws allow a terminally ill patient to hasten an inevitable and unavoidable death. It's not suicide nor euthanasia; rather, a possible option if the pain from the underlying illness gets to be too much or quality of life too degraded.

While many faith traditions adhere to ancient traditions and understandings of physical life's final journey, modern medical technology has provided new information opening the door for faith leaders to actively reconsider some beliefs. Disease and terminal illness represent less mystery now, and are more associated with scientific and technological problem solving.

Death with Dignity laws offer dying individuals an opportunity to ponder an important final life question, "What is the meaning of my life?" For many, this is a profoundly spiritual question, and answers come, not when an individual is consumed by a flurry of doctor's appointments, treatments or tests, but in the comfort of solitude when an individual feels at peace.

Below you'll find blog posts which discuss the religious and spiritual aspects of death and dying.

Brittany Maynard's story has prompted discussions about our model legislation, the Oregon Death with Dignity Act, throughout the US. Over the last week, we've heard from hundreds of people in support of Death with Dignity. The guest post below by Rachel Coyle is republished with permission. The article originally appeared on Rachel's blog, Of a Moderation.

I have watched a lot of people die.

After college, I spent nearly two years providing patient care in the emergency department of a Level 1 trauma center. Today, I work with hospice patients, offering comfort to those who have 6 months or less to live.

I am also blessed with a big, loving, Catholic family. Our faith has played a major role in shaping each of us throughout the years.

In fact, it's safe to say religion has played a major role in every aspect of my life.

Yet I firmly believe in the right of our terminally ill to die with dignity.

Karen Kaplan is an ordained rabbi and served as a hospice chaplain for seven years. Learn more about Encountering the Edge and read book excerpts on the publisher's site or Amazon. You can also see Karen's own blog, Offbeat Compassion.

Death with Dignity National Center's Melissa Barber asked me as I prepared this post, "Why did you write this book?" This is something every author should keep in mind throughout the writing process. It implies, among many other things, that a solidly cogent answer must precede the genesis of any worthwhile book.

While writing my hospice chaplain memoir, I kept in mind how the author of Ecclesiastes admonished his son: "Of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh." And I was acutely conscious of needing abundant justification for writing Encountering the Edge: What People Told Me Before They Died.

Melissa's question is also an excellent tool for self-reflection. It's one thing to explain what a reader might get out of it, and quite another for authors to delve into the spiritual reasons underlying their endeavors. (The psychological reason is yet another dimension, and this is dealt with in the book.) I'll now endeavor to take on both challenges.

Death with Dignity supporter Joan Tollifson sent the email below to the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF) about her dismay at the direction the organization has taken in recent years.

Dear Friends,

I am an amputee. I worked long ago at the Center for Independent Living in Berkeley and was active in the disability rights movement. I was inside the Federal Building for the entire month of the 504 occupation. I have been deeply saddened in recent years to see the disability rights movement, which I love, align itself with the most conservative religious forces in our country and oppose things like assisted death, which I fully support.

I'm 65, and if I end up with a painful, terminal illness, I welcome the right to legally terminate my own life. I've been with friends who made this decision, and I know that in Oregon, it cannot be made lightly—there are more safeguards in place and hoops to jump through than you can imagine. I know how deeply grateful those friends were to have this option.

Throughout the week, we keep people up-to-date with information about the Death with Dignity movement and other topics related to end-of-life care through Facebook and Twitter. Below are highlights from this week.

Throughout the week, we keep people up-to-date with information about the Death with Dignity movement and other topics related to end-of-life care through Facebook and Twitter. Below are highlights from this week.

Efforts regarding Death with Dignity:

The Vermont House Human Services Committee voted 7-4 to restore the safeguards to the proposed Death with Dignity bill, and today, the House Judiciary Committee voted 8-3 to move the bill to the floor of the House for a vote.

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Defend dignity. Take action.

You are the key to ensuring well-crafted Death with Dignity laws for all Americans. With your financial and volunteer help, the Death with Dignity National Center, a 501(c)(3), non-partisan, nonprofit organization, has been the leading advocate in the Death with Dignity movement. Individual contributions helped us pass new Death with Dignity laws in Washington and Vermont, defend the Oregon law, and provide education and outreach programs for the vitality of the Death with Dignity movement.

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About Death with Dignity

The greatest human freedom is to live, and die, according to one's own desires and beliefs. From advance directives to physician-assisted dying, death with dignity is a movement to provide options for the dying to control their own end-of-life care.

Death with Dignity National Center is the leader in this movement, successfully establishing, advancing and defending the landmark Oregon and Washington Death with Dignity Acts.

Political Action Fund

The Death with Dignity National Center partners with the Death with Dignity Political Fund to conduct lobbying and political activities in order to achieve the enactment of Death with Dignity laws in other states.

Patients & Families

The Death with Dignity National Center was formed out of a profound commitment to the idea that personal end-of-life decisions should be made solely between a patient and a physician. We are pleased to provide you with support and information as you face the difficult challenges ahead.